Could Morley train station get refurb?

Published:09:00Wednesday 05 August 2015

A councillor has stepped up the campaign to modernise Morley Station, which remains in need of improvement.

Coun Neil Dawson has met with former Leeds City Council leader Keith Wakefield, now chairman of a region-wide Transport Committee to discuss the station’s need for disabled access and extended car parking.

Access to the Huddersfield-Manchester platform can currently only be gained via a flight of steps, while Station Road continues to be used by motorists as a makeshift car park due to a shortage of spaces.

Coun Dawson said: “We need to have major improvements at the station that will increase the number of car parking spaces to accommodate the existing and future demand at the station. Already we see cars parked the length of Station Road as there are insufficient places for parking.

“I have also asked if the West Yorkshire Combined Authority can also promote Morley Station to be included in the next phase of Network Rail plan to create step-free access at railway stations.

“With the right level of investment in facilities then Morley Station would have significant growth and provide a public transport alternative for commuters from Morley to Leeds and elsewhere in West Yorkshire.”

Campaigners were disappointed last Christmas when Morley missed out on a share of a Department for Transport cash pot set aside for improving disabled access at stations. On that occasion, 26 places were granted money - only four of them in the North of England.

Recent developments at the station have included the introduction of electronic information boards displaying journey information and the presence of ticket sellers on the Leeds platform at peak times. But with six times more passengers using Morley Station than eight years ago, calls for further changes are growing louder.

Nigel Bywater, from friends of Morley Station said: “At the present time, people with access problems cannot alight at Morley, coming from Cottingley and Leeds. All full size single deck buses over 7.5 tonnes will be required to be fully accessible from 1 January 2016, under Government rules. Let’s hope that Morley train station will be accessible too.”